Big Dada, 2003
“Follow the light, the light is your guide….”
Almost everything MF Doom touched in 2003 seemed to have “classic” potential, and this album is no exception. One of the standouts for MF Doom, and hip-hop in general, was Take Me to Your Leader under the guise of King Gheedorah. On this album, MF Doom takes sole control of the production, which is something we rarely see from him. His style is fairly unique, using classic strings, guitar, and movie samples and effects largely relating to the Godzilla movies of old. It’s one of the best concept albums I’ve heard, coming close to Dr. Octagon. The album starts off strong with “Fazers,” one of the rare occasions when MF Doom picks up the mic, and he rocks it. Next ya got “Fastlane” where Biolante does very well over a repetitive but catchy screeching guitar loop. And a few tracks later we find MF Doom having fun with samples on “Monster Zero.” The large majority of the album finds us listening to previously unknown MCs, but they really hold their own. Then MF Doom finally picks the mic back up for “Anti-matter” where he and Mr. Fantastik trade verses over a downtempo guitar loop. The beats are fresh and the unknown rappers do their jobs. What more can you ask for? It’s a solid record.